Ausaine F6M Wasp
| Ausaine F6M Wasp | |
|---|---|
| |
| F6M Wasp | |
| Role | Multirole fighter |
| National origin |  Meridon
|
| Manufacturer | Ausaine Aerospace |
| First flight | 14 August 1977 |
| Introduction | 3 September 1986 |
| Status | In active service |
| Primary user |  Meridonian Navy  Meridonian Air Forces
|
| Produced | 1979-present |
| Number built | 2,012 |
| Unit cost |
86.2 million MD (F5M7)
|
The Ausaine F6M Wasp is a Meridonian carrier-capable, supersonic, twin engine, two seat, twin tail, multirole jet fighter built by Ausaine Aerospace. Designed to fit the needs of the Meridonian Navy to replace a variety of legacy aircraft conducting strike and air combat roles, particularly the A6M Raider and A7M Cutlass, it was designed to reduce operating costs by combining a large variety of roles into one aircraft. Adopted by the Meridonian Navy and later by the Meridonian Air Forces, the Wasp comprises the 'low' end of the 'high-low' mix of fighter aircraft.
The Wasp is designed and marketed as a multirole fighter aircraft, however it was designed with ground attack missions in mind- a role in which it complements the air warfare-oriented Gruening F5M Lynx in service. Wasp is capable of effectively conducting any missionset expected of a fighter aircraft, and is commonly used as a carrier-based refueler by the Navy. It pioneered a number of advancements, particularly in avionics, which became standard in the Meridonian aircraft. Designed for rugged operations from both carrier and land short fields and ease of maintenance, its well-balanced aerodynamic characteristics and versatility have also made it a popular escort aircraft, forming the mainstay of a number of foreign militaries. Meridonian variants have been upgraded to the F6M2 variant, which includes advanced avionics and the introduction of an infrared search and track system.
Development
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Design
Operational History
The F5M entered frontline service with the Meridonian Navy in early 1974, equipping units from 8 Carrier Air Group aboard the carrier Anerca- specifically, 35 Naval Fighter Squadron.
Following the collapse of the Air Forces' Air Supremacy Initiative in 1977, Gruening received a contract to massively upscale production to fill the capability gap for Air Forces units. The contract led directly to Gruening abandoning civilian sector development as it shifted its efforts entirely to military production of the Lynx, and for a time briefly became the largest single employer in its home Mahine Territory as it opened plants in Kohaku and TBD to support its Marin Bay operation. The first Air Forces unit to be equipped with Lynxes was 97 Tactical Fighter Squadron of Tactical Fighter Wing 74 in July of 1978.
Fleet F5M models were well-liked by pilots for their high thrust-to-weight ratios, endurance and range, and payload capacity. Issues with low-speed handling were apparent, however, as the plane was prone to difficult-to-recover flatspins at high yaw/high angle of attack scenarios, and the Altern MG-410 engines that equipped fleet models were prone to compressor stalls at high angles of attack. Maintenance personel found dealing with Lynx models cumbersome due to the complexity of its moving wing and wing vane systems. Some of the issues of early models were addressed in the F5M2 upgrade, however these models were mostly delivered to the Air Forces with the exception of two squadron's worth of planes being delivered to the Navy.
Navy F5Ms regularly conducted intercepts of Korean, Kaskaidan, Aureumterran and other aircraft sent to probe naval formations in the Marinan and Anagonian oceans. The retirement of carrier-based bomber platforms and the sunsetting of Chevalier-based photograph reconnaissance platform also saw the shifting of the photo reconnaissance duties of these aircraft onto fleet Lynxes, which were equipped with specially developed Aircraft Reconnaissance Capture Apparatus (ARCA) pods. The size of the ARCA pod required specialized modifications to aircraft to be able to carry them. Of an airwing's two Lynx squadrons, one was equipped with three ARCA capable aircraft. F5M5 and later models came equipped standard with these modifications, allowing flexibility in the employment of the ARCA pod until its sunsetting in 2010 with the advent of more capable and miniaturized targeting pods and other sensors systems such as UAVs.
Variants
- F6M
- Initial operational variant, first supplied to the Meridonian Navy in 1974. As initially supplied, it was almost purely an interceptor and air superiority aircraft, with marginal ground strike capability added through unguided bombs and rockets only. It was powered by Altern MG-410 afterburning turbofans, which proved unreliable and prone to compressor stalls especially at high AOAs. All F5M models were upgraded to F5M2 standard by 1983.
- F6M2
- Upgraded variant of the initial F5M2 variant addressing numerous concerns by the Navy and adding operational requirements for use by the Air Force. Wing vanes mounted in the glove box were permanently removed, and the addition of a second CRT display for navigation was included. Integration with civilian navigational sources including VOR and ILS were integrated for use, including a HUD approach mode. Automatic Carrier Landing System (ACLS) capability was added to this model. A total of 103 F5Ms were upgraded, and an additional 242 were produced to F5M2 standard.
- E6M2 Backwave
- Upgrade program conducted in the mid-late 1980s, its primary improvement was replacing the unreliable Altern MG-410 engines with Hollon FT80s, which themselves were a product of the failed Air Supremacy Initiative. Performance increases were substantial, allowing even a fully-loaded fighter to take off without the use of afterburner, a feat unmatched by any other model of naval fighter before or since. Integration was added for the TANDEM NAVLFIR system, including the employment of laser-guided bombs.
Operators
Current Operators
- Meridon- 1,600 have been built for the Meridon Defense Forces. All variants have been upgraded to F6M2 standard.
Specifications (F6M2)
General Characteristics
- Crew: 2
- Length: 50 ft 10 in (15.5m)
- Wingspan: 39ft 6.6 in (12.05m)
- Height: 13 ft 10 in (4.2 m)
- Wing Area: 494 sq ft (45.9 m2)
- Empty Weight: 26,700 lb (11,203 kg)
- Max Takeoff Weight: 62,400lb (28,304 kg)
- Powerplant: 2 × Hollon FT94E afterburning turbofans, producing 13,500lbf (60 kN) each dry, 20,200lbf (90 kN) in afterburner
- Fuel Capacity: 15,500lb internal, up to 5x optional 480gal (3,260lb/1,478kg each) external tanks
Performance
- Maximum Speed: Mach 1.34 (1465 km/h, 909 mph) at altitude
- Service Ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,240 m) +
- Rate of Climb: 45,304 ft/min plus (230 m/s)+
- Wing Loading: 126.2 lb/sq ft (617.6 kg/m2)
- Thrust/Weight: 0.647 at MGTOW
Armament
- Guns: 1 × Mark 40 25mm cannon with 520 rounds
- Payload: 13 hardpoints total: 4 per wing, 5 fuselage stations with total capacity of 20,000lbs of payload
Avionics
- TA-940C active electronically scanned array radar
- AE-161B radar warning receiver
- AI-50B infrared search/track
- AI-20B missile approach warning system
- AE-202C Electronic Warfare/ Defensive Electronic Countermeasures System
